Blog Post #9- Looking at Cassette Tapes Through a Lens of Diffusion

 The lens of diffusion theory is a theory that attempts to explain the rate at which new ideas and technologies spread. It is a very detailed theory that can be applied to a lot of new technologies or ideas such as the development of Facebook or even abolitionism. Since we previously discussed the history of cassette tapes, I thought it would be a good idea to delve a bit further into that impactful technology and examine how it spread through this lens of diffusion. 

There are a few different names for each part of the curve that we can use to determine at what stage of life the technology was at and why the people using it were using it. Cassette tapes had a very important 'experimental' stage. This is the beginning of the curve, when the technology just begins to come out and is still being developed or improved majorly. At this point, the only people interacting with these new cassette tapes were the ones inventing it (pioneers) or the ones highly interested in obtaining the technology. This would be people at recording companies or the people that were behind making the cassette tape. These people caught on because of how innovative the technology was; it was going to change the entire way we work with audio recordings. 

Next came the early adapters and early majority. These were the people that caught interest in the technology fairly early on. The early adapters discovered how convenient it was to use these cassette tapes and the possibilities that came with them, such as recording music and having portable access to it. This influenced the early majority, which was the start of the boom of the cassette tape. There were really no downsides to using this new technology. Its possibilities for new audio technology were near in sight, especially when the Sony Walkman released. When considering the late majority and laggards, those people were simply those that did not have an immediate need for the technology or were doubtful. 

Blog Post #7- Age of AI

 After watching the video about the Age of AI, I had a lot of different thoughts about it. Learning about technology is always interesting, but it becomes a little scary when that technology could be replacing you. There were a few different shocks in this video about the effects of AI, even outside of taking jobs. AI affects things like inequality in our workplaces and our very own economy. 

The use of AI by companies provides more efficiency; what is efficiency when it comes to businesses and companies? Less workers and more money. AI provides this exactly, which means they have no real reason to keep the workers that can be easily replaced by this new technology. However, do not let this sway you completely. There are quite a few positive things to gain from this AI technology; for example, a lot of these algorithms and AI technology are made to improve for you. This means it is always trying to get better and tailor things better towards you. 

One of the more concerning things regarding AI technology, is how it affects our privacy. AI softwares such as ChatGPT are meant to be human in nature. For example, the social media app, Snapchat, has released a new feature called 'My AI' where users are able to chat with their own personal AI bot. The concerning part is that for this technology to have been made, our data and behavior online must have been analyzed. There is also a concern about our privacy and businesses. Businesses that use this new AI technology want to know what we are doing now, soon, and later. Analyzing our activity online will tell them everything they want to know about us. At the end of the day, it is up to each individual to decide if AI is a good or bad thing; it depends on how much you want to gain and how much you are willing to give up. 

Blog Post #8- The Internet and World Wide Web (Reaction Post)

We use the internet and world wide web everyday. I use both every time I write and publish a blog. I recently learned about its history and how it was developed. The growth of the internet has happened extremely fast; in under a century, it has been integrated into our everyday life so much that if it were to stop working, it would collapse a lot of things all over the world. There are a lot of pros and cons that come with the using the internet, but overall it seems to have done a lot of good for advancing society. 

The first version of this revolutionary creation was made in 1969, called ARAPNET (Advanced Research Projects Agency Network). It was mainly used for academic and research purposes but lasted until the late 80s. ARAPNET was nothing like the internet we know and love today. It was two computers sending data to each other over a local network. As simple as that seems, it was the foundation for building the internet that exists today. This first version of the internet was more basic than what we see today. 

When the world wide web was first introduced to the public, it was used for some very basic tasks. 

These included rapid communication, the first electronic news sources, stock market trading, and some small entertainment. For example, this is when email was first being used and when we could watch Youtube videos for the first time. It may all seem a little weird that the internet was limited to such small things (which were revolutionary at the time) when it has expanded to something much more today. The world wide web has expanded and become its own living ecosystem of online activity. Online social media has taken the world by storm; there is much more independent news and journalism because of how easy it is to publish things. There are also many developments of new online currencies, also known as cryptocurrencies. Although there are a ton of good things that the world wide web brought us, there have also been a fair share of bad things such as the Dark Web. 

Blog Post #6- AntiWar and the Progressive Era

 It is no secret that the media we consume is filtered by the government and by our own interactions. Most media we receive is through our phones which track all of our data and filter the news and politics we see depending on that. However, there are things that are filtered not by our own accord. Although America is a country that allows free speech, there are some things that somehow become hidden or not 'mainstream.' One of these things seems to be any speech that is 'antiwar' or perceived as 'anti-government'. 

When looking at websites like AntiWar, you can tell that it is an obscure website that has difficulty getting traffic. For example, I bet that when you just clicked on that link just now, your browser asked if you were sure you wanted to be redirected to that website before actually sending you to it. It did for me. However, there was no reason given for why you shouldn't be redirected to the site. After looking at the website it is clear there is nothing threatening to the safety of your device, besides the blatant antiwar speech. So why are these websites so hidden in our world wide web? I personally believe it is because they contain 'unsavory' and 'unpopular' statements that heavily criticize the government and our involvement in wars. 

Is there really any surprise that these anti war websites are heavily censored? In the past, anybody that was antiwar would be jailed and severely punished. Obviously, that cannot happen today but they can still censor voices. It is even more interesting because the websites like The American Conservative are not exclusively antiwar, but are still obscure because of that occasional positioning in some articles. As a young adult in America, it is shocking to see the number of people that disagree with the media that I see everyday, also known as the mainstream media. There is so much to learn from these websites and they can help gain a new perspective on the events happening in our world today. 

Blog Post #5- EOTO (Cassette Tapes!)

 Communication technologies have evolved immensely over the past century, and even further back than that. Not every communication technology is something like a radio or the cell phone. It's important to consider all different types of this technology and their impacts. A technology that has practically been completely replaced is the cassette tape. One of the first audio recording technologies, the cassette tape, dates back to the 1960s. It completely changed the way that people record and listen to audio today, but not before going through developments of its own. 

First, we must discuss the history of the cassette tape to understand how it became what it is today. Although these tapes seem ancient compared to the technology of phones and other recording technologies, they were actually very revolutionary for audio technology. In the early 1960s, Lou Ottens worked with a team at Philips to create a tape cartridge that could record audio on it. 

The EL 1903 was the first functional model that they presented at a radio show. It was capable of recording sixty minutes of audio, thirty minutes on each side of the tape. People would try to use these models to record music and other audios, but they were not adequate enough. New versions of cassette tapes were made as the years progressed, mostly changing the materials used to make the tapes, improving output levels. Eventually, cassette tapes started being used for music and the innovations being made were a reflection of that.

Cassette tapes were sold blank; there was no audio to play back already on the tapes. This means that you could record basically anything you wanted. People would record song after song onto cassette tapes, the first version of a 'playlist'! This was an incredible advancement for audio technologies and public access to them. Not only were these tapes convenient, they were also easily accessible. Anybody could record anything onto these tapes and without the hassle of more complicated technologies. However, the appeal of being able to listen to music without having to record sixty minutes worth was too strong. 

Companies started selling pre-recorded cassette tapes, but they were still not good enough quality to compare to record players. As new improvements were made, the possibility of listening to good quality music on the go became more and more of a reality. When the Sony Walkman released, listening to music on the go became extremely popular. The sound quality had increased greatly and finding music recorded on cassette tapes was much more common. It was the first time you could listen to music and it was actually good! In my eyes, cassette tapes were the first IPods. 

These cassette tapes had a bigger impact than people give credit for. If it weren't for the innovation of the cassette tape, the way we record audio and listen to music today may be completely different or not even exist. The original invention was a way for anyone to record any audio. Each improvement brought something different, including the inventions that came for listening to these tapes such as the Sony Walkman. Although people say that cassette tapes have died and been wiped out by new audio tech, it is important to remember the roots of our listening technology.